Question: Anyone have any experience with a Nissan Murano?

GDSmithTX

GDSmithTX

Corporate cog
I'm giving my venerable 2008 Altima to my son when he turns 16, so I'm shopping for another car. I'm thinking of getting an SUV, and I really like the 2016 or newer Nissan Muranos for their exuberant styling and upscale-ish standard equipment.

I've testdriven a couple and they are comfortable, solid and quiet, with the tech features I'm looking for at a reasonable price. I came really close to buying a silver 2017 SV last night for about $23k, but I have some more to look at.

I was wondering if anyone here had any experience with them.

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I don't personally, but my daughter's best friend's parent both drive one. They have a black one and a red one and they both really like them.
 
From a parts perspective, the early Muranos had some issues with suspension that they seemed to correct with the later versions...like most vehicles these days the real weakness appears to be the wheel hubs and bearings which are getting progressively lighter and weaker as they try to decrease vehicle weight...and of course brake rotors, which is also becoming a universal issue with cars...
 
I think within that realm you've got the Murano, Forester, CR-V, RAV 4, and a fair amount of others. The CR-V, Forester, and RAV 4 generally tend to trade places within the top three on a year to year basis, but the Murano is supposed to be nice. New, it's the next class up on these vehicles and may be a bit bigger, but it generally doesn't get rated as well. It seems to get middling ratings in trade magazines and consumer ratings.

That said, you gotta like what you're buying and driving. My advice, like with buying guitars, is go out and try as many vehicles as you can in its class. Brand loyalty is nothing in cars...the dealerships and manufacturers give no shits these days. Get the best car for the money you're willing to spend and don't let the name be a factor. Do let independent crash test ratings, safety features, fuel efficiency, incident of repair, and overall track record guide your choice above other features.

We just got a 2018 Forester in June/July. We were literally a coin toss between it and the new CR-V, but the CR-V got a big overhaul and a new turbo engine/transmission that has no real history. The Forester might also be getting redesign for the 2019 model, but when these are drastic enough the history/track record of the car can go out the window.

Anyway, I have no personal experience with them...their base price is higher than what we paid for our ridiculously featured Ltd edition Forester. After nine years in an base model Honda Element, my wife wanted some luxury appointments and she got them.

Good luck with the car hunt.
 
I bought one last April....love it. Great family car. Its still early but its been completely reliable so far.
 
jelloman said:
From a parts perspective, the early Muranos had some issues with suspension that they seemed to correct with the later versions...like most vehicles these days the real weakness appears to be the wheel hubs and bearings which are getting progressively lighter and weaker as they try to decrease vehicle weight...and of course brake rotors, which is also becoming a universal issue with cars...
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Thanks. When you say the early Muranos, you mean the first generation ones from the early 2000s?
 
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GDSmithTX said:
Thanks. When you say the early Muranos, you mean the first generation ones from the early 2000s?
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Yes, exactly...the first gen Murano had some kind of design issues in the rear suspension and they ate control arm bushings and sway bar links at an alarming rate...they apparently rectified it with Gen2 and beyond...
 
In my professional opinion, you can get a considerably better car if you're willing to part with a bit more money. That said, the Murano is perfectly fine and very quick and the quality has improved significantly since the mid-2000s.
 
Pretty much all the new crossover shit is the same. Different bells and whistles. Every make and model HAS issues just different ones. All the damn things look similar anymore, hard to tell a Hyundai from a Jeep from a Toyota highlander these days. There are only a handful of SUV's (sport utility, vehicle.....a truck not a car) these days vs over saturation of crossovers (suv looking vehicles built on car platforms with very light duty intended....more car than truck). The crossover is the mini van of the 2010's . That's my jaded professional view....
 
VoidTerraFirma said:
In my professional opinion, you can get a considerably better car if you're willing to part with a bit more money. That said, the Murano is perfectly fine and very quick and the quality has improved significantly since the mid-2000s.
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Thanks, but the Altima I'm giving to my son now has about 148k miles and has been the most reliable and trouble-free car I've ever had. I'm sold on Nissan, I want an SUV (I've driven exclusively sedans for 20+ years) and to get the features I want, I'd have to pay the same for a less comfortable Rogue SL as I would for the well-equipped Murano.
 
VoidTerraFirma said:
Not joking, the Buick Enclave is surprisingly nice in that segment. You can find some deals on em.
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I've given the comparable Enclaves a comparison look, and they are significantly more expensive for the same features, as well as being kind of dated in their styling to my eyes. They have more of a mini-van look.
 
GDSmithTX said:
I've given the comparable Enclaves a comparison look, and they are significantly more expensive for the same features, as well as being kind of dated in their styling to my eyes. They have more of a mini-van look.
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American cars still haven't caught up to the reliability and longevity of Japanese cars. They almost always have higher incident of repair and maintenance costs. And it's hard to support the American auto industry having watched it screw its workforce for so long, first by cutting benefits, pushing automation (which I understand from a production and profit perspective), then waves of mass firing, more automation, further cutting of salaries and benefits, and ensuring the greatest profit margins for shareholders and bonuses for their top executives.

Too many friends and families that I grew up with screwed over by these folks. Add to that the Japanese bring auto manufacturing to the U.S. I know there were/are issues and it wasn't perfect, but they were creating jobs while the the big three were cutting them or the related salaries benefits as much as they could at every opportunity.

It's easy enough to find out which Toyotas, Honda, Nissans, and other cars are built in the U.S. as well as our North American brothers and sisters in Mexico and Canada.
 
GDSmithTX said:
The 3rd gen Muranos (2015-present) are built in Mississippi.
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There you go. Support companies that are actually creating jobs for Americans. It's NOT like anyone in America benefits from making American auto executives richer. Hell, our tax dollars bailed those mis-managers out to the tune of billions...but yeah, they need tax breaks.
 
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